Appleseed
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- For the Aesop Rock album, see Appleseed (album).
Appleseed.jpg
Appleseed is a manga by Masamune Shirow which, like much of his work, merges elements of the cyberpunk and mecha genres with a heavy dosage of politics, political intrigue, philosophy, and sociology. As of 2004, four books have been released between 1985 and 1989.
Originally published in Japan in 1985, Book One Appleseed: The Promethean Challenge was published directly to paperback instead of being serialized, a rarity in the Japanese manga market. This was soon followed by the publication of Book Two, Appleseed: Prometheus Unbound, Book Three Appleseed: The Scales of Prometheus in 1987, and Book Four Appleseed: The Promethean Balance in 1989.
In 1990, Shirow produced the Appleseed Databook, a detailed look into history, people, and technology of the world of Appleseed.
Appleseed Hypernotes was released in 1996 as a collected volume in Japan. It consisted of a four chapter story followed by technical information about the world, mechs, and equipment much like Appleseed Databook. Originally published in Comic Gaia in serial form, it was reprinted for readers in the United States in Super Manga Blast (issues 25-36), a Dark Horse Comics publication. According to Anime Tourist (http://www.anime-tourist.com/), an online manga news site, one of the terms for Hypernotes publication stated that Appleseed Hypernotes could not be released in English as a collected format. The reason for this is because Shirow was unsatisfied with the work and wanted to fix it before releasing it as a complete book for English readers. It has been said that Appleseed Hypernotes was Book Five of the Appleseed series.
Shirow has stated that he originally planned the series to be composed of a total of ten books, but currently has made no plans to continue the series.
In 1986, Appleseed won the Seiun Award — the Japanese equivalent for the Hugo — for Best Manga.
Appleseed was also the inspiration for two anime adaptations, the first an OVA released in 1988 and directed by Kazuyoshi Katayama, the second a CGI movie released in 2004 and directed by Shinji Aramaki.
From 1988 to 1992, Appleseed was published in English by Studio Proteus. The manga is currently published by Dark Horse Comics.
References
External links
- Details of the 1988 anime (http://imdb.com/title/tt0094668/) at the Internet Movie Database
- Details of the 2004 anime (http://imdb.com/title/tt0401233/) at the Internet Movie Databasede:Appleseed
Categories: Masamune Shirow | Manga | Anime | Japanese films | 2004 films | Mecha | Cyberpunk | Dark Horse Comics